Players Are Set To Reap Bonanza: They Can Taste It

Contemplating outfielder Ruben Sierra`s bid for a $5 million arbitration award, Texas Rangers General Manager Tom Grieve was reminded of a ``feeding frenzy.``

Anyone care to argue?

--Cecil Fielder: $5.4 million, $1.75 million more than the previous arbitration record high sought in the 16-year history of the process -- the $3.65 million bid by Baltimore`s Glenn Davis last season.

--Sierra and Pirates outfielder Barry Bonds, both seeking $5 million.

--Twenty players asking $3 million or more.

--Eighty-seven players asking $1 million or more.

--Tom Glavine, the National League Cy Young Award winner, asking $3.4 million. Last season, Glavine was paid $697,000, which means he`s looking for a $2.7 million raise.

--The Mets` David Cone, a .500 pitcher last season, asking for $4.2 million after receiving $1.8 million in 1991.

There was one small blip of reality. Athletics first baseman Mark McGwire, coming off a dreadful season (.201 batting average), submitted a $25,000 paycut, indicating a willingness to make do with $2.85 million. McGwire is believed to be the first person in arbitration ever to ask for a cut; the Athletics are seeking to dock him to $2.45 million, the maximum 15 percent cut allowed.

The Atlanta Braves will contend with the price of success. In addition to Glavine, the defending National League champions are facing high-stakes arbitration cases with outfielder Ron Gant, who made $1.3 million and is asking $3.1 million, with the club offering $2.15 million; reliever Alejandro Pena, who is asking $2.9 million to the club`s $2.1 million; and pitcher John Smoltz, who made $355,000 last season and is asking $1.75 million to the club`s bid of $1.2 million.

Many teams, of course, hope to come to a contract agreement before a hearing, when an arbitrator chooses either the club`s number or the player`s number. Clearly, the signing of outfielder Bobby Bonilla to a $29 million deal, outfielder Danny Tartabull to a $25.5 million package, and pitcher Chuck Finley to a four-year $18.5 contract has created new benchmarks in the never- ending spiral of rising prices.

In that light, are $20 box seats any mystery?

Greedy players? Sure, there`s some of that. But take a look at owners who apparently aren`t smart enough to keep down salaries without illegally colluding with each other. As long as the market bears it, the players -- no different than movie stars or Madonna -- will keep seeking the big paydays.

-- Short hops: For the first time since the team began operations, all Marlins employees will assemble for four days of organizational meetings beginning Thursday in a Fort Lauderdale hotel... Murray Cook, whose hiring as a scout by the Marlins was announced only last week, has been called a candidate for the Pirates` GM job by club president Mark Sauer, but Ted Simmons is the clear favorite. Simmons, the Cardinals` director of player development, worked for Sauer when he was president in St. Louis.. Marlins President Carl Barger, in a conversation with Pirates owner Doug Danforth, gave his recommendations for the Pirates` position. They were the two runners-up for the Marlins` GM job: Doug Melvin, the Orioles` assistant GM, and Bill Lajoie, the Braves` scout... More Pirate news: Sauer has begun talks with manager Jim Leyland regarding a contract extension. Leyland, whose contract runs through 1993, says he wants those talks completed or dropped before spring training. ``I don`t want to be going to Florida and having all those Miami people doing stories on whether or not I`m going to be manager down there,`` said Leyland, whose close relationship with Barger has prompted speculation he could be in line for the Marlins` managing job. ``I am not going to disrupt my team.``

-- Oops. Ad campaign for the Dodgers` 1991 highlight film urges people to watch the story of the 1991 West Division champions. The Dodgers finished in second, a game behind Atlanta... With Eric Davis talking about stealing 50 bases again, the Dodgers may become the `90s version of the Cardinals. Brett Butler has averaged 36 steals a year, Juan Samuel 37, and Jose Offerman 55 in four minor league seasons. Even cleanup hitter Darryl Strawberry has averaged 22 a year.

-- Cracked mirror: George Steinbrenner was quoted as saying the Mets` $29 million contract for Bonilla and projected $40 million payroll was ``the root of all evil in baseball.``

-- Ticket pricing: While the Marlins are contemplating a $20.50 premium box seat to sell, it`s possible to lay out some truly serious cash for a ball game. You can rent a luxury suite, of course -- at Comiskey Park. The White Sox have 84 Diamond Suites available at a cost of $55,000 to $90,000 annually, for terms of three to five years. Six suites are made available on a per-game basis, at a cost of either $2,500 or $3,000 depending on the size of the suite.

In Boston, where there is a wait list for the $18 box seats, which are closest to the field and available only a full-season ticket basis, you have the option of joining the 600 Club. For a mere $130,000 -- $50,000 up front -- you can purchase a five-year license to the 600 Club that entitles you to four seats in a glass-enclosed section behind home plate, just under the press box. You also have use of a formal dining room, access to three bars, and of course, a parking space.